written by Emma Nugent
January, 2000

He has notched up almost a century, so John Brown had every reason to believe his best days were behind him.

But today the 98-year-old rose to a new Millennium with a new title - Sir John Brown.

A knighthood for the elder statesman of the Clyde shipyards was one of the surprises of the Honours List.

He said: "I have seen a lot of things over my years and have been through a lot, but I never expected something like this. It was totally out of the blue and I was a bit overwhelmed at first to be honest. Now the news has sunk in and it's very, very satisfying."

John started working at the John Brown - no relation - shipyard in 1919. It was just after the Great War and Britain was determined to compete with the best in the world.

Business in the shipyards was booming and the docks and builders on the Clyde were some of the best and most prosperous in the world.

John recalled: "It was a great time. I had just left university having completed a course in ship design and naval architecture and I was taken on as an apprentice designer."

John's career spanned 50 years and he retired in 1967 before the real death of the industry on the Clyde.

From his home in the west end of Glasgow, he said: "This knighthood is a tribute to all the craftsmen. They were the salt of the earth. No one can take all the credit for the wonderful ships we built. We worked as part of a team and even now I consider myself just one of the well-oiled cogs."

As a world-renowned marine designer, John personally took charge of the design of the Queen Elizabeth, Queen Mary, QE2 and the Royal Yacht Britannia.

He said: "There were so many wonderful ships it's hard to choose a favourite, but my fondest memory is probably of the Queen Mary."

The demise of the industry on the Clyde has been one of John's saddest memories but he believes the industry is not yet dead.

He said: "With the changes at Kvaerner, I am sure ships will continue to be constructed on this great river. The subsidised foreign competition has more or less killed it off but it won't die out completely. I'm sure those who remain are still the finest in the world and that will keep them open in the future."